Jules Marchal was a Belgian diplomat and historian specializing in the history of colonial exploitation in the Belgian Congo. He began his writing career under the pseudonym A. M. Delathuy, publishing in Dutch before later releasing studies in French under his own name. Marchal's work gained significant recognition in scholarly circles. Adam Hochschild, author of the bestselling book King Leopold's Ghost, praised Marchal's research as "the best scholarly overview by far, encyclopedic in scope," highlighting the comprehensive nature and scholarly rigor of his historical investigations into Belgian colonial practices.